Drain tile support block



y 1967 A. c. TAIT 3,339,121

DRAIN TILE SUPPORT BLOCK Filed March 9. 1965 Andrew C. 70/? IN VENTOR.

United States Patent Office 3,330,121 Patented July 11, 1967 3,330,121 DRAIN TILE SUPPORT BLOCK Andrew C. Tait, 3646 Campbell Road, Port Huron, Mich. 48060 Filed Mar. 9, 1965, Ser. No. 438,228 2 Claims. (Cl. 61-13) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The herein disclosed drain tile support has to do with a precast hollow-type block characterized by parallel side walls connected 'by transverse end walls, the bottom edges of which are flush with the bottom edges of the side walls, the top edges being disposed in a plane below the plane of the top edges of the side walls. The top surface of each end wall embodies a plurality of angularly related upwardly disposed planar faces which are such that the faces of each end wall provide an upwardly directed generally concave cradle capable of seating differently sized drain tile.

The present invention relates to a block which is functionally designed and structurally made to function in a septic tank drain field and which, more particularly, has to do with a unitary adaptation made of concrete or lightweight aggregate and which functions to effectually support conventional-type drain tiles or pipe sections.

It is an object of the invention to provide a hollow type drain tile basing and supporting masonry or equivalent block to replace the commonly or customarily used drain tile block which is made up of several component parts and is much too large and too heavy to well serve the purposes for which it is intended.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a septic tank drain tile basing and supporting block which except for a central longitudinal reinforcing rib takes the form of an open frame having spaced parallel longitudinal side walls connected at their respective ends by transverse end walls whereby to thus provide a block which can be easily picked up and put in position and otherwise handled with convenience and expediency.

In carrying out a preferred embodiment of the invention the side walls are elongated and rectangular in side elevation and have fiat top and bottom lengthwise edges and are connected by end walls whose bottom portions are flush with the bottom edges of the side walls. However, the end walls have especially designed upper edge portions which are provided with angulated edges or surfaces which coact in serving to accommodate drain tiles of varying cross-sectional sizes.

The improved transverse end walls are interposed between and join the respective end portions of the side walls. These end walls have bottom edges which are flush with the bottom edges of the side walls and have top edges which are disposed in a plane below the plane of the top edges of the side walls. In addition, the top edges of the end walls have load 'bearing, centering and cradling surfaces which function to perch and seat coacting surface portions of the tile and the upper portions of the side walls, which extend above the level of the top portions of the end walls, and coact in confining the tile to guard against undesirable lateral shifting and displacement.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective showing two complete drain tile support blocks and a portion of a third block with all blocks in end-to-end alignment to provide a trough or channel for a part of the seated and confined drain tile.

FIG. 2 is a view on a larger scale taken centrally through one of the blocks appearing in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross-section on the plane of the section line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

Each of the concrete, aggregate or equivalent blocks herein shown are denoted by the numeral 6. The drain tile which is to be seated and retentively supported by these blocks is denoted by the numeral 8. Inasmuch as each block is the same in construction the description of one will suffice for all. With this observation in mind it will be noted that whether viewed from the top or bottom the body portion of the block comprises an elongated or rectangular frame whose side wall members are disposed in spaced apart parallelism and are denoted by the numeral 10. The lengthwise bottom edges are denoted at 12 and the fiat lengthwise top edges are denoted at 14. The respective end portions of the side walls are joined by an intervening transverse end wall, each end wall being denoted by the numeral 16. The vertical height of the end wall is less than the vertical height of the side walls and the bottom marginal edge 18 is flat and flush with the bottom edges 12. The upper edge portion of each end wall, denoted generally at 20, terminates in a plane spaced below the plane of the fiat top edge 14. It follows that the thus integrated side and end walls provide a tile receiving and confining trough or channel for the tile 8. It will be noted, more particularly in FIG. 3, that angulated surfaces are provided and disposed in pairs, two of the surfaces being in outwardly and upwardly divergent relationship and being denoted at 22 and the additional two angulated surfaces being denoted at 24. With this arrangement of seating and cradling surfaces it will be evident that tiles of difierent cross-sectional dimensions can be efiFectively and reliably supported. The surfaces 22 as distinguished from the surfaces 24 may be regarded as stepped and located to the left and right of the central or median portion of the end wall surface 26. A longitudinal reinforcing rib 28 is provided and is interposed 'between and integrally joined with the interior surfaces 30 of the respective end walls as denoted at 32 in FIG. 2. The vertical height or cross-section of this rib is such that the upper surface 34 is flush with the central end wall surface 26 as brought out in FIG. 1. The dimension of the block compared with the rib leaves a space to the left and right of the rib as shown in FIG. 3 to facilitate handling of the block and assures requisite strength and rigidity.

It will be evident that a block constructed as herein disclosed well serves the purposes for which it is intended.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A septic tank drain field drain tile base and support comprising a precast unitary block embodying a pair of opposed spaced parallel longitudinal side Walls having flat top and bottom lengthwise surfaces, end walls transverse to and interposed between and integrally joining respective end portions of said side walls and defining a substantially hollow frame-like block, said end walls having bottom surfaces flush with the bottom surfaces of the side walls and having top portions spaced downwardly a predetermined distance from the plane of the top surfaces of the side walls, said top portions of each midway of said side walls; an upwardly and outwardly directed series of angulated drain tile planar seating faces extending laterally and in opposite directions from each horizontal surface toward the respective side walls, in combination, an elongated centralized reinforcing rib positioned midway and evenly between interiorvertical surfaces of the side walls and joined at its respective ends flush with said horizontal surfaces of said end'walls, and

V wherein the planar seating faces are symmetrically arranged on opposite sides of the vertical plane midway between the side walls and with each said planar face of 'one end wall coplanar with one corresponding face on the other end wall; and wherein the faces of each end wall 4 s provide an upwardly directed'generally concave cradle, said cradles being alike and adapted to provide seating for difierently sized drain tiles. w

2. The drain tile base and support defined in and according to claim 1 and wherein the uppermost surfaces of each end wall terminate in a plane below the aforementioned top lengthwise surfaces of said side walls.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2;637,l70' 5/1953 Benedict 61--11 3,225,546 12/1965 Zaucha 6l13 EARL I. WITMER, Primary Examiner. 

1. A SEPTIC TANK DRAING FIELD DRAIN TILE BASE AND SUPPORT COMPRISING A PRECAST UNITARY BLOCK EMBODYING A PAIR OF OPPOSED SPACED PARALLEL LONGITUDINAL SIDE WALLS HAVING FLAT TOP AND BOTTOM LENGTHWISE SURFACES, END WALLS TRANSVERSE TO AND INTERPOSED BETWEEN AND INTEGRALLY JOINING RESPECTIVE END PORTIONS OF SAID SIDE WALLS AND DEFINING A SUBSTANTIALLY HOLLOW FRAME-LIKE BLOCK, SAID END WALLS HAVING BOTTOM SURFACES FLUSH WITH THE BOTTOM SURFACES OF THE SIDE WALLS AND HAVING TOP PORTIONS SPACED DOWNWARDLY A PREDETERMINED DISTANCE FROM THE PLANE OF THE TOP SURFACES OF THE SIDE WALLS, SAID TOP PORTIONS OF EACH END WALL BEING PROVIDED WITH A PLANAR HORIZONTAL SURFACE MIDWAY OF SAID SIDE WALLS, AN UPWARDLY AND OUTWARDLY DIRECTED SERIES OF ANGULATED DRAIN TILE PLANAR SEATING FACES EXTENDING LATERALLY AND IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS FROM EACH HORIZONTAL SURFACE TOWARD THE RESPECTIVE SIDE WALLS, IN COMBINATION, AN ELONGATED CENTRALIZED REINFORCING RIB POSITIONED MIDWAY AND EVENLY BETWEEN INTERIOR VERTICAL SURFACES OF THE SIDE WALLS AND JOINED AT ITS RESPECTIVE ENDS FLUSH WITH SAID HORIZONTAL SURFACES OF SAID END WALLS, AND WHEREIN THE PLANAR SEATING FACES ARE SYMMETRICALLY ARRANGED ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE VERTICAL PLANE MIDWAY BETWEEN THE SIDE WALLS AND WITH EACH SAID PLANAR FACE OF ONE END WALL COPLANAR WITH ONE CORRESPONDING FACE ON THE OTHER END WALL; AND WHEREIN THE FACES OF EACH END WALL PROVIDE AN UPWARDLY DIRECTED GENERALLY CONCAVE CRADLE, SAID CRADLES BEING ALIKE AND ADAPTED TO PROVIDE SEATING FOR DIFFERENTLY SIZED DRAIN TILES. 